Patrika completes one year in Madhya Pradesh

Patrika, the Hindi daily, claims to have doubled its circulation in Bhopal, since its launch last year

As Hindi daily, Patrika, completes one year in Madhya Pradesh, it has some good numbers to cheer about. It has doubled its circulation figures, since the launch in Bhopal last year.

Patrika, today, claims to have a circulation of 2.4 lakh copies in Bhopal. It was launched with an initial print-run of 1.2 lakh copies.

In Indore, where it was launched in September, it has added 60,000 households to its launch number of 1.2 lakh. The daily hopes to take the edition's figure above three lakh, by circulating it upcountry too, very soon.

Before expanding to Chhattisgarh, Patrika wants to cover the entire Madhya Pradesh. However, Bhopal and Indore are still on the priority list, as according to Arvind Kalia, national head, marketing, Patrika, the two cities "contribute to 74 per cent of the total advertising spends in the state."

Patrika competes with Dainik Bhaskar in the state. The Bhopal edition of Dainik Bhaskar, as per ABC (Jan-June, 2008) has an average circulation of 2.41 lakh copies. The other competitors in Madhya Pradesh are NavDunia, NaiDunia, Raj Express, Dainik Jagran and Nava Bharat.

Patrika's success, according to Kalia, can be attributed to the publication's "fearless journalism and quality editorial; various social and promotional activities in the state."

As a promotional activity, Patrika conducted Fun@Work in advertising agencies and the offices of its clients in Bhopal, Indore, Delhi and Mumbai.

Another activity that received tremendous response is the Amritam Jalam movement in Bhopal, to bring the people of the city together "to reinstate the lost beauty of the famous Bade Jheel."

Kalia says, "More than 20,000 people volunteered and even the chief minister of the state, Shivraj Singh Chauhan, participated in the movement."

Patrika (which is Rajasthan Patrika in Rajasthan) dropped 'Rajasthan' from its name when it entered Madhya Pradesh. The publication has editions in Ahmedabad, Surat, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hubli and Chennai. In addition, it has 12 editions in Rajasthan.